Jordan is often called the “Switzerland of the Middle East.” Not because of its mountains or its banks, but because this country lives peacefully in a politically turbulent region. Many of our friends and colleagues were concerned about our safety with the civil war raging just north in Syria. But Jordan is still a very safe place. Unfortunately for the economy of Jordan, many tourists avoid the area. However, this means that the important sights were much less crowded than usual.

The first stage of our visit took us to Jerash, an hour’s drive north of Amman, to explore the remains of a Roman town. Sometimes the remains of Roman cities require a lot of imagination because you can only see a few stones or building foundations. However, the site of Jerash surprised us by the quality of the remains and the size of the site. Details of columns, arches and restored facades give a good overview of a Roman provincial city built in the 1st century.

Après Jerash,nous sommes allés au sud d’Amman pour visiter le Mont Nebo et Madaba. / After Jerash, we went to the south of Amman to visit Mount Nebo and Madaba.Deux vues du sommet du Mont Nebo, célèbre pour être le lieu supposé de la sépulture de Moïse. / Two views from the summit of Mount Nebo, famous for being where Moses is said to be buried. (Photo – Suzanne)Madaba: Nous n’avons malheureusement pas eu le temps de visiter la ville de Madaba car nous y sommes arrivés en fin d’après-midi et nous n’avions le temps que pour une visite d’une mosaïque célèbre avant de revenir à Amman. / Unfortunately, we didn’t have time to visit the city of Madaba as we only arrived at the end of the afternoon and we had only time to visit a famous mosaic before returning to Amman. (Photo – Pierre)

You do get to the most interesting of places.. wonderful share this post, thank you.. That old Roman site must be something to see in real life, the size becomes a reality when compared to the people in the photos…

Thanks. We do try to take advantage of being in Europe for a few years to travel as much as we can to places that would be more expensive or take longer to get to from Canada. Stay tuned for more on Jordan and upcoming new destinations.